Marsh says improving market conditions should continue for insurance buyers – so long as major catastrophe losses are avoided.

The broker’s Australian Mid-Year Insurance Market Update, published today, says rates have stabilised and premium pools have grown “across most insurance classes”.

“Overall, the first half of 2024 saw a significant improvement in market competition and the return of insurer choice for buyers, which had not been generally seen since 2017,” the report says. 

“Barring catastrophic losses from the North American hurricane season or other unforeseen events, continued improvement is likely in the purchasing environment for insurance buyers.”

Property insurance rates ranged from 10% reductions to 5% increases at renewal, directors’ and officers’ rates for ASX 300 listed companies fell by 23% on average, and long-term agreements (LTAs) made a comeback. In cyber, supply outpaced demand, leading to downward pressure on rates and insurers being more willing to broaden coverage.

“Insurer underwriting performance has improved, along with overall profitability, leading to an increased appetite for growth and a welcome return of competition and choice for insureds,” Marsh head of global placement for the Pacific region Scott Eccleston told insuranceNEWS.com.au.

“The reappearance of LTAs is among the signs of competition. As coverage becomes broader, insurers are looking to differentiate themselves with incentives like this, in a market that’s very price-focused.”

Pacific head of cyber Gill Collins says cyber insurance “continues to be a driver of positive change for Australia’s business community from both a risk management and incident response perspective. Due to the process involved in obtaining a policy, it informs increased cyber risk maturity, cyber resilience and improved response to cyber incidents. 

“This all allows the impact and cost of cyber incidents to be reduced.”

The full report can be downloaded here.

From Insurance News magazine: As competition and capacity pick up, is the industry cycling back towards a soft market?